The present invention relates to an auger arrangement for unloading a truck box of the type which has side walls and a rear wall or tailgate toward which the box is suitable for discharge through an aperture.
Material unloader apparatus of various sorts is, of course, well known as exemplified by apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,717,272. The unloader apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,717,272 includes an auger conveyor which is disposed for elevating material flowing by gravity from an aperture in a tailgate of a material carrying box mounted on a truck vehicle. The inventors of the above prior art have recognized the need for providing means of storing the auger conveyor as may be noted by the fact that they have provided a hinge in the length of the auger conveyor for collapsing the upper portion thereof into the material carrying box. The folding of the auger conveyor at the hinge is beneficial as it allows the vehicle to be driven in places where it could not otherwise be driven without damage being done to the auger conveyor. For instance, the auger conveyor could conceivably be caught on ovehanging tree branches or other obstacles if the auger conveyor were left in an extended position.
The apparatus disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,717,272 has a difficulty, however, in that it is often necessary that an operator should climb into the material carrying box, wade into the material, and lift the upper portion of the auger conveyor to an upright position while standing with feet sunk in material in the material carrying box.
The use of apparatus as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,717,272 also makes difficult the use of a tarpaulin for covering a load in the material carrying box. If the auger conveyor is folded onto the tarpaulin it is apt to be ripped. On the other hand, if the tarpaulin is placed over the folded auger conveyor, the tarpaulin must be removed each time that the auger conveyor is to be used.